General Land Centennial Exhibition
1891 World's fair
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The General Land Centennial Exhibition was a World's fair held in 1891 in Prague, then in the Austria-Hungarian Empire.
| General Land Centennial Exhibition | |
|---|---|
Site plan | |
| Overview | |
| BIE-class | Unrecognized exposition |
| Name | General Land Centennial Exhibition |
| Building(s) | Petřín Lookout Tower |
| Visitors | 2,500,000[1] |
| Timeline | |
| Opening | 15 May 1891 |
| Closure | 18 October 1891[1] |
| expositions | |
| Previous | Exposition Universelle (1889) in Paris |
| Next | World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago |
| Simultaneous | |
| Other | International Electrotechnical Exhibition |
Many buildings were erected for this exposition, including the Průmyslový palác (Industrial Palace) and the Křižík's light fountain at Výstaviště Praha.
Summary
Taking place towards the end of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, this exhibition was a demonstration of what was to soon become Czechoslovakia's desire for independence. Its date marked 100 years since the first industrial exhibition held in 1791 in Prague's Clementinum when Prague was part of the Habsburg monarchy. The German population in Prague attempted to move the 1891 expo to the following year, when it could not be used to mark the century. When the Exhibition was held nonetheless, they largely boycotted it.[2]
Sometimes known as the Prague Jubilee Exhibition the main site for the fair is now the Prague Exhibition Grounds close to Stromovka Park.[2] The biggest building was the Průmyslový palace designed by Bedřich Münzberger.
Opening
The fair was opened on 15 May 1891 by Archduke Karl Ludwig and attended by government ministers, the governor Count Franz Thun and Prince George Lobkowicz. Emperor Franz Josef I did not attend the opening ceremony, but visited the fair later. The Křižík's light fountain was also introduced during the Exhibition.
Art
Paintings shown included works by Emanuel Krescenc Liška[3] and Hopeless Love by Augustin Němejc which won a second prize.[4]
Legacy
Many buildings from the fair still exist including the Art Nouveau Hanau Pavilion at Letná and a 60-meter tall Petřín Lookout Tower on top of the Petřín hill. The Křižík's light fountain was reconstructed recently and is still operational.
